Conventionally, audiovisual systems have been proposed in which are combined a video/audio signal generating apparatus such as a player or recorder, a sound reproducing apparatus such as an AV amplifier, and a video/audio output apparatus such as a television receiver. The video/audio signal generating apparatus, the sound reproducing apparatus, and the video/audio output apparatus respectively are also referred to as a source device, a repeater device, and a sink device.
An example of this sort of audiovisual system is, for example, described in Patent Document 1. In the system described in Patent Document 1, apparatuses of each of a monitor receiver, a DVD recorder, and an AV amplifier are connected with an IEEE 1394 cable, a D-terminal video cable, an analog audio cable, and an HDMI cable. Transmission of video signals and audio signals between each of these apparatuses, and also transmission of control signals, is performed with these cables. In the same system, when an HDMI-compliant interface is used, the DVD recorder, in response to user operation, acquires information of a format with which the connected monitor receiver and AV amplifier are compatible, and outputs video signals and audio signals compatible with that format.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2005-51547